• YOU reported (January 27) Green Party councillor Siân Berry’s opposition to the new energy recovery facility (ERF), which has been under construction in Edmonton for the past three years, (Labour finance chief offers enthusiastic backing for new Edmonton waste incinerator).

Her description of it as an “incinerator” is ill-informed and contrary to all of our expectations for pursuing a sensible, rational and environmentally sound approach to disposing of waste that can’t be recycled.

While other parts of the UK have for decades despoiled the countryside with landfill, the existing 50-year old plant in Edmonton has diverted 21 million tonnes of rubbish from landfill, used it to generate electricity, heat and power for thousands of homes, and reduced carbon emissions by millions of tonnes.

The material put in landfill has been a potential source of primary energy which can be used to displace fossil fuels, the principal cause of global warming.

The proposed plant at Edmonton will burn this fuel in such a fashion that the emissions will be considerably less than from the displaced fossil fuels principally because the ERF plant will use the heat generated more efficiently. This is because a significant proportion of the heat produced is used to supply heating networks.

A typical coal-fired power plant wastes 40 per cent of the fuel energy through its cooling towers (thrown into the atmosphere). The new Edmonton ERF will also supply electricity to the national grid which because it is embedded in an urban environment suffers less transmission loss. Gains all round.

Labour councillor Richard Olszewski was on very firm ground in defending the building of this installation. And, as he explained, it does nothing to prevent us increasing our recycling rates which we have every incentive to do. Indeed the development at Edmonton will include huge public facilities for reuse and recycling of waste.

MILES SEAMAN
Sarre Road, NW2